Modern automatic transmissions for motor vehicles adapt themselves to the driving style of the driver by an adaptive driving strategy. This links the driver type evaluation with the adapted selection of gear and converter coupling shift characteristics with additional functions, for example recognition of the driving resistance, urban driving, a spontaneous deceleration and a spontaneous acceleration of the vehicle and the condition of the road with the low-friction value, hot running and high-temperature operation. This makes it possible to use economical, i.e., consumption-saving gear-shift characteristics when a ‘quiet’ driver is recognized. Further, a ‘sporty’ driver and driver types between these can be recognized. However, the allocation of a driver type recognized by the adaptive driving strategy to another driver can no longer be modified. Nor can the time dependence when changing from one driver type to another driver type be modified.
Known driving strategies offer the recognized driver type a defined driving strategy which is stored in the control system for the automatic transmission; for example, with a sporty driver gear-shift characteristics at higher engine speeds are used.
For example, DE 39 22 051 describes a control device for an automatic transmission, which is intended to improve adaptation to the driving behaviour of the driver or his vehicle handling that depends on the traffic situation. For this purpose the internal combustion engine can be influenced by a power control element, for example an accelerator pedal or a throttle valve, in that transmission gear ratios are selected automatically via gear-shift programs which depend on the position of the power control element and the engine speed, and a signal proportional to the position of the power control element is detected cyclically or anticyclically. From the signal value detected a driving activity is determined and used for the selection of a gear-shift program. Besides the signal value detected for the power control element a further signal value pertaining to an operating or driving parameter of the motor vehicle, for example the driving speed, the transverse acceleration, the longitudinal acceleration and/or the longitudinal deceleration and the engine speed is determined cyclically or anticyclically, after which the signal values detected are converted via performance graphs influenced by operating or driving parameters of the motor vehicle into values of primary characteristics from which, via a switching function, a value of a secondary characteristic is obtained and a value of a first driving activity is determined as a weighted sum on the one hand from the secondary characteristic actually obtained and on the other hand from the value of a first driving activity determined a certain calculation time earlier and stored, or a number of secondary characteristic values obtained earlier and stored, this being used for the selection of a gear-shift program.
Thus, starting from a consumption-optimized gear-shift program, the control system for the automatic transmission adapts itself dynamically to the driving behaviour and the driving and traffic situations actually prevailing, without the need to actuate additional operating elements. However, no provision is made in this for the driver to manipulate the adaptive driving strategy comprehensively.
The purpose of the present invention is to provide a method whereby it is made possible for a driver other than the driver responsible for the defined adaptive driving strategy that has been stored, to match the gear-shift strategy more closely to his own needs.